Zeinab Sekaanvand Lokran, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman, at risk of execution following an unfair trial in which she was convicted of the murder of her husband. She was 17 years old at the time of the crime.

“Child bride.” “Criminal.” “Juvenile offender.” These are some of the many labels assigned to Zeinab Sekaanvand during her far too short life. Sekaanvand, who was executed on Tuesday in Urumieh prison in Iran’s West Azerbaijan province, was rarely seen for who she really was: a vulnerable young woman trapped in a cycle of violence and sexual abuse since childhood.

Sekaanvand, who was 24 when she was hanged, had spent almost a third of her life in detention. In February 2012, she was arrested and put on trial over the murder of her husband, a crime that took place when she was 17 years old. She had reported being raped by her brother-in-law and tortured by police after her arrest. What’s especially chilling about Sekaanvand’s case is the number of points at which the Iranian authorities could have intervened to help her. Sekaanvand reported the abuse she suffered. She spoke out, yet she was ignored.

It’s a scenario that is all too familiar to many women and girls. But because Sekaanvand lived in Iran, her story took an even darker turn.

There are many more like Sekaavand in Iran—which is one of the world’s last countries to execute “juvenile offenders.” At least 88 people who were under the age of 18 at the time of the crime are currently on death row, some of whom have been languishing there for over a decade. In particular, Zeinab’s case echoes that of Fatemeh Salbehi, who was executed in 2015 at the age of 23 for the murder of her husband, whom she had been forced to marry when she was 16.

Looking closer, Sekaavand’s case reads like a textbook explainer of the myriad ways the Iranian justice system stacks the odds against women.

Born in northwest Iran into an impoverished and culturally conservative Iranian Kurdish family, Sekaanvand was 15 years old when she ran away from home to marry a man called Hossein Sarmadi. Zeinab had said she saw the marriage as her only opportunity for a better life. But her new husband was violent, and the relationship quickly became physically and verbally abusive.

Sekaanvand requested a divorce on more than one occasion but her husband refused. In Iran, the legal system’s deeply-entrenched discrimination against women and girls often prevents them from getting a divorce, even if they are subjected to domestic violence.

Although Sekaanvand registered several complaints about her husband’s violent abuse with the police, they repeatedly ignored her pleas for help and failed to launch an investigation against him.

Desperate, Sekaanvand tried to return to her parents, but they had disowned her for running away. She said that, meanwhile, Hossein’s brother was regularly raping her. Still a child, she was under the power of two violent and abusive men, and no one would help her.

In February 2012, Sekaanvand was arrested for the murder of her husband. She was denied access to a lawyer and said she was tortured and beaten by police officers during questioning. It is under these circumstances that Sekaanvand “confessed” to stabbing her husband. It was only at her final court hearing, three years after her arrest, that the authorities provided her with a lawyer. At this point, she retracted her “confession,” telling the judge that her husband’s brother—her alleged rapist—had committed the murder.

Sekaanvand said in court that her brother-in-law had told her that, if she accepted responsibility, he would pardon her. Under Iranian law, murder victims’ relatives have the power to pardon the offender and accept financial compensation instead. But rather than request further investigations, the authorities dismissed Sekaanvand’s statement—convicting and sentencing her to death by hanging.

Sekaanvand’s trauma did not end there. In 2015, while in Urumieh prison, Sekaanvand became pregnant after marrying a male prisoner. Her child was stillborn in September 2015. Doctors said her baby had died in her womb two days earlier due to shock—around the same time that Sekaanvand’s cellmate and closest friend had been executed. The authorities forced Sekaanvand to go back to prison the day after the stillbirth and did not provide her with any postnatal care or psycho-social support.

Before she was executed this week, the authorities carried out a pregnancy test on Sekaanvand. When it came back negative, they took it as a green light to execute her.

Sekaanvand’s life was defined by a legal system which brazenly disadvantages women. A system which sets the age of criminal responsibility at nine years for girls and 15 for boys—and the legal age of marriage for girls at 13. It does not criminalize rape of a woman by her husband. It violently imposes the abusive, discriminatory and degrading practice of forced hijab (veiling) on women and young girls and then jails the ones who campaign against it.

It’s a system where, ultimately, a woman’s testimony is worth less than a man’s. That’s why no one in power listened to Sekaanvand’s story. They chose to end it instead.

In boost for Washington, Chinese companies pull back on deals as Saudis pledge to increase supply

The U.S. is set to renew sanctions on Iran’s energy sector early next month. Above, an Iranian oil platform. Photo: raheb homavandi/Reuters

China is cutting some of its oil trade with Iran after vowing for months to resist U.S. sanctions on the exports, providing Washington with an unexpected boost to its efforts to isolate the Islamic Republic.

The move comes as Saudi Arabia, seeking to damp a foreign-relations crisis, said this month that it would increase oil supply, pushing down prices and giving traders further options outside Iran.

The shift by Beijing, Iran’s top customer, gives the U.S. a building block in an economic barrier around Iran as it prepares to renew sanctions on the country’s energy sector in early November.

China’s largest oil refiners, China National Petroleum Corp. and China Petrochemical Corp., haven't booked any Iranian cargo for November, according to people familiar with the matter. China has been importing about 600,000 barrels of Iranian crude a day.

Bank of Kunlun, owned by CNPC, has told its Iranian customers it will stop doing business with them by the sanctions deadline on Nov. 4, according to customers in Tehran.

Bank of Kunlun has been the main Chinese bank carrying payments for Iranian oil exports and financing exports of Beijing’s goods to Tehran. Halting payment will make this business with Iran less attractive for both sides.

CNPC, Sinopec and Kunlun didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The U.S. has said it is in discussions with partners and allies about enforcing sanctions. A U.S. official said Washington has engaged with China extensively on the matter.

The latest Saudi pledges to ramp up supply came this week as the kingdom sought to damp tensions over the killing of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Oct. 2.

“That’s helped sanctions and that’s harmed Iran,” said Adel Hamaizia, a Middle-East associate fellow at London’s Royal Institute of International Affairs.

The statements brought oil prices down to around $75 a barrel from recent highs around $85 a barrel. With the drop, “refiners can replace Iranian oil at a price they can afford,” said Homayoun Falakshahi, an Iran-focused analyst at U.K. consultancy Wood Mackenzie.

The U.S. now has more leverage on nations that had been reluctant to go along with the sanctions, the U.S. official said. Any exemptions or waivers to keep buying Iranian oil beyond early November will be limited in time, as the aim is to bring Iran’s exports to zero, the official said.

“There may not be much need for waivers because [Tehran’s oil buyers] are stopping business with Iran even before sanctions start,” the official said.

Even before the Chinese move, reduced purchases had been eroding Iran’s production.

Iran’s output declined to 3.3 million barrels a day as of early October, according to a person familiar with production data. That is down from 3.8 million barrels a day in May, when President Trump decided to pull out of an international nuclear deal with Iran and begin the process of reinstating sanctions.

European refiners such as France’s Total SAand Spain’s Cepsa have stopped buying Iranian oil while others such as Italy’s SarasSpA and EniSpA are winding down trades.

India is among the countries negotiating with the U.S. for a possible sanctions waiver, the U.S. official said, adding that any exemption would be limited to giving India more time to find replacement suppliers.

India imported about 500,000 barrels a day of oil from Iran last month, according to Swedish oil-data firm TankerTrackers.com. But it has told oil companies that it expects to cut that amount to 300,000 barrels a day in November.

Mr. Trump, when asked on Oct. 11 about the decision of some countries like India and China to continue to purchase oil from Iran, told reporters: “We will take care of them.”

The U.S. has pressed the Saudis to sustain oil supply to meet demand as Iranian oil is cut off.

As the international response to the killing of Mr. Khashoggi this month at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul put more pressure on Saudi Arabia to comply, Saudi oil minister Khalid al-Falih stepped up plans to boost supplies.

This week he promised a new production increase of 300,000 barrels a day and didn’t rule out topping the increase by another 1 million barrels a day if needed.

Danish Foreign Minister Samuelsen said he is talking to 'partners and allies' about possible sanctions

Anders Samuelsen, Foreign Minister of Denmark, looks on during a joint press conference which concludes the Nordic Foreign Minister meeting at Nasby Castle in Taby, Sweden, on April 18, 2018.

Islamic Republic of Iran Terrorist Regime has started a series of assassination plots in Europe. It has been a while since the Terrorist Regime of Tehran assassinated any opposition members, until recently in 2017 and 2018 which IRI plotted and attempted assassinations. IRI is back to its original assassination plots of the 1980s and 1990s. Again in 2010s, the Terrorist Regime is back to killing the Iranian Opposition abroad.

European Union must comprehend that it cannot deal with a Terrorist Regime with a history of 4 decades of terror. This recent assassination chain is causing the EU to think twice about continuation of dealing with IRI.

IRI new assassination plots started again in 2017 in Denmark and continued in 2018 in France attempting to assassinate Maryam Rajavi and now another plot in Denmark.

In an alleged plot that has taken weeks to come to light, Denmark has accused Iran of planning to assassinate an activist on its soil.

Iran has dismissed the allegations. But Denmark has recalled its ambassador from Tehran and is speaking to other EU countries about how to respond.

Both countries had already clashed this year after a deadly shooting at an Iranian military parade in September.

Iran accused Denmark, the Netherlands and Britain of harbouring members of militant opposition groups following the deadly attack, in which more than 25 people were killed.

One of those groups is at the centre of Denmark's murder plot allegation.

Their claim also comes as the EU tries to save a landmark nuclear deal with Iran, from which the US has already withdrawn.

In August, the Trump administration reimposed sanctions on the country, and a second wave comes into force on 5 November.

So what does Denmark say happened? What's been the response? And has this happened elsewhere in Europe?

What happened in the investigation?

The drama started in September, when - seemingly from nowhere - a large area around Denmark's capital Copenhagen was cut off.

Police closed bridges, boats and trains to and from Zealand, Denmark's largest island, in a massive hunt for a Swedish-registered black Volvo.

Three people involved in a "serious crime" were in the car, an official statement said at the time. "Witnesses who see the vehicle should contact the police immediately," it added.

After hours of confusion and travel chaos, the authorities reopened all transport links and apologised, saying in a tweet there was nothing new to report on the case.

Rumours have circulated ever since about what prompted the unprecedented action, which came just six days after the Iranian military parade was attacked.

On Tuesday, the shocking answer came.

Finn Borch Andersen, head of Denmark's intelligence service Politiets Efterretningstjeneste (PET), said the agency believed Iran "was planning an attack in Denmark" against three activists.

The trio, who live in the city of Ringsted, south-west of Copenhagen, are part of the separatist Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of al-Ahwaz (ASMLA).

What is ASMLA?

◾The Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of al-Ahwaz was set up in 1999, and is classified as a terrorist group in Iran◾ASMLA is one of several groups that wants a separate Arab state in the country's south-western Khuzestan Province◾It split in two in 2015, with one faction based in the Netherlands and the other based in Denmark. Both groups are called ASMLA◾ Group founder Ahmad Mola Nissi was shot dead in November 2017 outside his home in the Netherlands

PET says days before the manhunt on 28 September, agents saw an individual taking photos of the ASMLA branch leader's home.

At Tuesday's press conference, the PET chief said they thought this person - a Norwegian citizen of Iranian origin - planned to give the pictures to Iran, which could be used to plan an attack on Danish soil.

Although no details have emerged about how PET found out about the man, Israeli public broadcaster KAN reports that information from spy agency Mossad helped lead to the arrest. Israeli government officials declined to comment.

What's been the response?

Iran was quick to dismiss the claims as fiction.

Foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said such "biased reports" and allegations pursued "the enemy's plots and conspiracies" to harm the developing relations between his country and Europe, according to Tasnim news agency.

Former PET chief Hans Jorgen Bonnichsen told Danish broadcaster DR it was "very rare" to have one intelligence agency making claims against another, as it could cause a rupture in international relations.

"PET has really thought about it before choosing that step," he said.

Only six days before Denmark shut down all its transport links to Zealand, an Iranian military parade was attacked in its south-western city of Ahvaz.

A spokesman for Denmark-based ASLMA said the al-Ahwaz National Resistance, an umbrella movement for Arab separatist groups fighting for independence for Khuzestan province, carried out the attack. But several of the other separatist groups denied any involvement.

The Islamic State group also claimed the shooting and published a video purportedly showing three of the gunmen being driven to the military parade in a car.

The men appeared to be dressed in Revolutionary Guards uniforms and talk about the importance of jihad. However, none of them stated that they were members of IS or pledged allegiance to the group's leader, Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi - something that is common in such pre-attack videos.

Iranian officials said they believed the gunmen had links to an "Ahvazi terrorist group".

In October, France accused Iran of an alleged bomb plot to attack exiled Iranian opposition members in Paris.

The claim follows the arrest of an Iranian diplomat based in Austria, Assadollah Assadi, by police in Germany.

In June, allegations emerged that Iran was behind the assassination of a man named by police as Ali Motamed near Amsterdam in 2015.

The 56-year-old is suspected of being Mohammad Reza Kolahi Samadi, who was accused of planting a bomb which resulted in the deadliest attack in modern Iranian history. Iran denies any involvement.

And in May, the US Secretary of State made a speech asserting Iran's elite Quds Force "conducts covert assassination operations in the heart of Europe".

Mr Pompeo did not substantiate the claims at the time, and they were met with confusion in Europe.

There have been no recent killings in Europe officially attributed to Iran.

A bus load of IRI forces carrying IRGC and Basij exploded due to suicide bombing in Sistan and Baluchistan province in South East Iran. We Can’t confirm at this point that was it the opposition or terrorists who committed the act but one thing is for sure:

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which came on the day of a U.S.-led conference in Warsaw that included discussions on what America describes as Iran's malign influence across the wider Mideast.

The state-run IRNA news agency, citing what it described as an "informed source," reported the attack on the Guard in Iran's Sistan and Baluchistan province.

The province, which lies on a major opium trafficking route, has seen occasional clashes between Iranian forces and Baluch separatists, as well as drug traffickers.

The Guard is a major economic and military power in Iran, answerable only to the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

While Iran has been enmeshed in the wars engulfing Syria and neighboring Iraq, it largely has avoided the bloodshed plaguing the region. In 2009, more than 40 people, including six Guard commanders, were killed in a suicide attack by Sunni extremists in Sistan and Baluchistan province.

A coordinated June 7, 2017 Islamic State group assault on Parliament and the shrine of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. At least 18 people were killed and more than 50 wounded.

And most recently, an attack on a military parade in September in Iran's oil-rich southwest killed over 20 and wounded over 60.

Iran's Fars news agency released a photo showing what it said was the wreckage of the bus

A suicide attack in south-eastern Iran has killed at least 27 members of the Revolutionary Guards, state media say.

The bomber targeted a bus transporting personnel in Sistan-Baluchestan province near the border with Pakistan.

The Sunni Muslim militant group, Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice), has said it was behind the bombing.

The Revolutionary Guards, set up shortly after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, are a major military, political and economic force in Iran.

What do we know about the attack?

The Revolutionary Guards branch in south-eastern Iran said a unit of its ground forces had been returning from the Pakistan border area on Wednesday when a car filled with explosives blew up beside their bus on the Khash-Zahedan road.

In a statement, it blamed "takfiri terrorists and mercenaries of the intelligence services of hegemonic powers". "Takfiri" is a term used to describe Sunni extremists who see other Muslims as non-believers.

It did not identify the "hegemonic powers", but Iran's foreign minister linked the bombing to a US-led conference on the Middle East taking place in Warsaw, Poland, that will include discussions about Iran's activities in the region.

Javad Zarif:

“Is it no coincidence that Iran is hit by terror on the very day that #WarsawCircus begins? Especially when cohorts of same terrorists cheer it from Warsaw streets & support it with twitter bots? US seems to always make the same wrong choices, but expect different results.“

This is one of the deadliest attacks on the elite forces in years, correspondents say.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards◾Created to defend the country's Islamic system and to provide a counterweight to the regular armed forces◾Estimated to have some 125,000 troops◾Includes ground forces, navy, air force, intelligence and special forces◾Thought to control around a third of Iran's economy through a series of subsidiaries and trusts◾Believed to have staff in embassies around the world, from where it allegedly conducts intelligence operations and organises training camps and arms shipments for foreign militant groups

What do we known about Jaish al-Adl?

Jaish al-Adl took up arms in 2012 to fight for what it says are the rights of Iranian Sunnis, who complain of discrimination by the Shia establishment.

The group has carried out several recent attacks against security personnel in Sistan-Baluchestan, which has a large mainly Sunni ethnic Baluchi community.

Earlier this month, Jaish al-Adl was blamed for an attack on a paramilitary base in Nik Shahr that left one Revolutionary Guard dead and five others wounded.

The group also said it had carried out two bombings that wounded three police officers in Zahedan at the end of January.

And in October, Jaish al-Adl kidnapped at least 10 security personnel, including several Revolutionary Guards, at a border post in Mirjaveh.

In September, gunmen killed at least 24 people at a military parade in the south-western city of Ahvaz.

Both the jihadist group Islamic State (IS) and Iranian ethnic Arab separatists claimed they were behind the assault, but neither provided conclusive evidence.

She took off her hejab and hung it on a stick!Iran Bad Hejab Girl Made a StandPersian Women Shall Always Defy the Arabo Islamic HejabNo one knows her name and the police took her away. She was one of the first who enflamed the protests in Tehran. It is ironic that she protested Islam and the Islamic Regime by her act but she was not even a participant in the protests. Before she had a chance to participate in the later protests, the Islamic Moral Police took her away. The box where she stood is now a shrine! She became the symbol for the Anti Hejab, Anti Islam, Anti-Islamic Regime, Freedom Loving Persian Women. She started something that became nationwide.

Mullahs assume that because there are no present riots or women unrests in Iran, they have killed the seed of revolution and silenced the women. Truth is that women are alive and the struggle is as well alive. The present situation is like hot flames under the warm ashes. If you look from the above, you see only ashes but if you touch it, you will notice hot fiery charcoals under the ashes!

Iranian women will never rest until total equal rights, total freedoms and total victory. A number of unelected Mullahs, Hezbollah and thugs cannot stop women’s rights in Iran. The Iranian women are one of the most educated, most devoted and most informed women not only in the region but in the world. Islam and Islamism cannot silence women. This foreign religion and ideology from the Arabian Deserts will not control the Intelligent Iranian women forever.

Iranian women demanding equal rights

Iran and Iranian women are like an over boiling pot full of hot boiling water which Mullahs and Hezbollah cannot contain and control. It will overflow and explode. In this day and age, a bunch of religious fanatics cannot stop the women’s rights and struggle to gain freedom and equality. We will overcome, but this is not a hope, it is an unescapable future and a promise.

Male chauvinism and Islamic control of women will come to an end and the free women of Iran will be on the front line of the future Iranian Nationalist Revolution to regain their lost prestige and rights.